James Stephen & The Good Ones blend heartland honesty with Northern charm, crafting British-Americana that feels just as at home in Stockport as it does anywhere across the Atlantic. Inspired by the lyrical content of Paul Simon and the modern warmth of The Bros. Landreth, JS&TGO straddle the line between grit and grace, firmly placing them among the brightest talent in the UK’s rising Americana movement.
Their debut single, “Growing Up,” was released on 6th June 2025, ahead of a much-anticipated debut EP that dives deep into life, loss, and the stubborn beauty of carrying on.
With “Growing Up” out now, we took some time to hear from James Stephen & The Good Ones. Read below to learn more about James Stephen & The Good Ones, the story behind “Growing Up,” and what’s to come.
Hi James Stephen & The Good Ones! Let’s start with how did you get your artist name?
Hello! Great place to start. In 2023, I opened a few shows for Nashville-artist Canaan Cox on his UK leg. My good mate, Jonny Morgan, came down to the London gig, and we were speculating about writing and releasing an EP together (which we will eventually get around to!). When discussing names for the EP, we candidly said ‘Two of the Good Ones’…and then, I just really liked the name ‘The Good Ones,’ so I poached it!
What city are you from and where are you based now?
I get some eye rolls from the band when I insist upon this, but I (James Stephen) am very proudly from Stockport. If you ask the band, they might say we’re from Manchester, but I will correct them if I’m in earshot! Individually, we’re from a few places; myself and Elliot (lead guitar) are from Stockport, Sam (bassist) is from Morecambe and the series of friends that I’ve had in on keys and drums are from all over the place too (stretching from Wales to Slovakia).
At what point in your life did you decide to pursue a career in music? How did you get started?
I’ve always been interested in music, even from a pretty young age. My parents aren’t particularly musical, but my mum always had music on around the house (lots of Phil Collins to my memory). At age eleven, I asked if I could have guitar lessons, and I wrote my first song a year later. I don’t think that I ever consciously thought ‘I want a career in music,’ but somewhere along the way I realised that I loved writing and playing, and I’m pretty happy with some of the gigs that I’ve played so far!
How would you describe your sound to readers who may not be familiar with you?
Great question. To people who aren’t familiar, I’d say British country with bite. To people who are aware of the Americana genre, I’d say British-Americana with bite. It all comes back to me having a bit of a growl in my voice!
Who are some of your main musical influences?
In no particular order (and it’s quite eclectic!): Michael Jackson, Phil Collins, John Mayer, John Butler Trio, Busted, Bros. Landreth, David Ryan Harris, Green Day, Daughtry, and Paul Simon.
Out of all of these, Bros. Landreth would give somebody the greatest idea of what we might sound like (I hope!).
Who would be a dream to collaborate with?
Honestly, of all the influences that I listed and what not, I’d absolutely love to collaborate with Nickelback or just come out at one of their shows to sing ‘Far Away’ with them. That would be peak music for me, every pleasure centre stimulated and a true moment in time. (Chad, give me the call when you play Manchester!).
In general, what are you listening to now that you’d recommend to fans of your music?
I’ve recently come across Theo Lawrence, a French country artist based in America. He’s got a real old-timey country sound going on that I absolutely cannot get enough of. Check his album, Cherie, out – it’s great from end to end and very easy to digest!
What’s one of the proudest moments of your music career so far?
Great question! I’d honestly say the first year we toured with Canaan Cox. It was the first time that we’d be booked to go up and down the country for gigs and playing to, and being accepted by, a room full of two hundred complete strangers every night was unreal. Special shout out to Bush Hall in London, we love, love, LOVE that venue.
What would you say are the greatest lessons that you’ve learned so far?
The single greatest lesson that I’ve probably learned is that you need to enjoy what you’re doing before anything else. People study performers more than they realise and you don’t want to be up there looking like you’re not even invested in your own songs. If something doesn’t feel right about what you’re writing, figure out what it is and make it right for your own sake; it’ll pay dividends later!
Now onto your release, ‘Growing Up.’ What inspired this song?
The song really is inspired by the reflections I, and countless others, sometimes have when we have those pockets of time to look back. I wouldn’t change my life for the world, I’ll preface this by saying, but it can be interesting to review everything that has come before you, especially memories of being young, and seeing if younger you would have traded youth for today’s reality.
What is ‘Growing Up’ about?
It’s about the disillusionment that can sometimes come with being a functioning adult. I vividly remember being in college and saying to mates (usually when we got kicked out of pubs for being underage) ‘I can’t wait to be eighteen, so this doesn’t happen.’ And that’s sort of what being young is, it’s looking ahead to the next thing that represents a bit more freedom and then, before you know it, you’re not ‘young’ anymore. ‘Growing Up’ is about those bits of time that we spend in our heads thinking ‘would younger me be happy with this today?’
What was the creative process like when making ‘Growing Up?’
I more or less wrote it in my bedroom one night! My partner had her friend over, so I took the opportunity to go upstairs to write and it sort of poured out. It happens like that every now and again.
Then, when I took it into a room with the band, it became more fleshed out and we changed this little bit and that little bit and, before you know it, we had the song ready to record. I’m really happy with how it turned out too!
How long did it take to complete ‘Growing Up?’
We recorded ‘Growing Up’ and the rest of the EP it will be on over a couple of months at Whitewood Studios in Liverpool. I don’t think non-musicians appreciate how much time goes into these things. It’s hours and hours of vocal takes, guitar takes, bass, keys, drums, random little percussion bits, ‘oh let’s try the guitar,’ etc.
All in all, we had everything that we needed from three or so sessions in the studio, and then Danny Woodward (our magical producer) mixed it over a couple of weeks. He did an unbelievable job too, I couldn’t be happier with the track and how easy it is to work with Danny.
What is your favorite lyric in ‘Growing Up’ and why?
Great question! I quite like the opening lyric: ‘I remember feeling all grown up / drinking Vimto out of plastic cups / pretending it was wine.’ Some things are universal to kids, but pretending to drink because it’s an adult thing to do is something me and my cousins would do at family parties growing up.
Otherwise, I also really really like the hook ‘Maybe growing up ain’t all that it’s cracked up to be.’ Because maybe it isn’t, maybe it is. It’ll vary from person to person, but everybody will have wondered it at some point in life.
What message do you hope fans take away from your music and from ‘Growing Up?’
I would hope fans take from all my music that they have a place to listen to music that hits home for them. I’ve always said that I want to write songs for those who don’t know how to say what they’re feeling and it’s true. These are just the normal ramblings of a northern bloke with emotions and words!
What’s next for you? Are you working on any upcoming projects, or do you have any upcoming shows that we should be on the lookout for?
We’ve got a main stage slot at Goatfest (in Codicote, Hertfordshire) on Sunday 24th August if anybody in that neck of the woods wants to see us! In terms of new music, ‘Growing Up’ is the first single of (at least) four new songs that will form the debut EP for James Stephen & The Good Ones, so keep an eye and ear out for those over the coming months!
Where can we follow you on social media?
Truth be told, I’m pretty much only active on Instagram and, less frequently, TikTok. But, it’s @JamesStephenMusic for both!
https://www.instagram.com/JamesStephenMusic
https://www.tiktok.com/@jamesstephenmusic
Thank you for the great interview; wish you much continued success!
